Chapter 7 Forestry: Reforestation, Natural Forest Management

emaining trees and plant communities. These practices leave the residualforest open to pest invasion and weaken its health or regenerationcapabilities. Similarly, leaving logging residues (“lops and tops”) in theforest can impede natural regeneration and increase the danger of forest fire.Taking too many trees of any one species may eliminate seed sourcesnecessary for natural regeneration and lead to changes in the composition oftree stands.Human environmental impacts. Activities in previously unmanaged forestareas can have damaging impacts on local communities. These areas areoften used for traditional hunting and gathering, and the activities can reducecommunity access to forest resources. The influx of “outsiders” involved inforest management and harvesting can lead to conflicts between localinhabitants and forest workers, to the spread of sexually transmitted diseasessuch as HIV/AIDS, and to hardship and social disintegration within the localcommunities dependent on adjacent forests.Sector Program Design—Some Specific GuidancePaying more attention to economics. Attention should be given to theeconomics of natural forest management to ensure that:• communities and concessionaires are optimizing their investmentreturns (microeconomics).• country-level planning considers unit cost per area (e.g., theinvestment needed for a forest to sustainably produce a ton oflumber per hectare) in choosing among different sector and land-useoptions (macroeconomics).In many cases, the steps needed to make a forest sustainably productive mustbe made (and paid for) well before production rises rises enough to pay forthem. In the developed world, the key to pre-commercial activities toimprove timber stands has been a sound understanding of the costs involved.Because it is so difficult to project timber prices at the end of the nextrotation 30–60 years down the road, many European countries, Canadianprovinces, and American states offer modest subsidies and incentiveprograms to convince forest owners to make such investments, which couldbe applied to African owners as well.If innovative natural forest management programs are to be effective inAfrica, stakeholders will need to pay attention to the microeconomics oftheir use. Can present activities finance such investments, or willgovernment and/or donors need to chip in? Do local people in governmentpromoted,community-oriented natural forest management projectsunderstand the costs and benefits in real terms? Calculation of botheconomic costs and financial returns should be a routine part of theseprograms.Certification—a golden opportunity. The emerging worldwide acceptanceof certification for the “green marketing” of sustainably produced forestproducts is a golden opportunity to bridge the gap between conservation andforest production. Although this comparative advantage has yet to be fullyrealized in the form of premium prices for certified timber products,Externalities that limitadoption of reduced-impactloggingPotential reasons that firms don’tadopt reduced-impact logginginclude:• A perception that reducedimpactlogging systems aremore expensive thanconventional practices;• The failure of conventionalaccounting systems to factorin the direct and indirect costsof wasted wood;• The lack of trained people toimplement new practices;• Low net profit margins thatlead loggers to maximizethroughput (i.e., aim for thehighest possible volumes ofwood) rather than overallprofit;• Transition costs (to replacemachines and train workers);• Undervaluation of standingtimber; and• Failure to enforce existingenvironmental regulations.Source: Holmes et al., 1999.EGSSAA: FORESTRY • March 2009 • download from www.encapafrica.org19 of 30